Japan's yearly weather cycle influences settlement patterns and agriculture across the islands. A. Cold, westerly winds from Siberia and cyclonic airflows from the Pacific Ocean provide ample rainfall for farming but contribute to high rates of erosion. B. Settlements are most concentrated along the Pacific seaboard to the south, where climate and topography are more suitable for crop cultivation than along the Sea of Japan. C. The yamase effect has a great impact on rice growing in northern Japan but does not affect cultivation in southern Japan, where precipitation comes in the form of rain rather than snow. D. Japan's yearly weather cycle makes farming possible only in the summer, as the effects of the Siberian air mass result in winters that are too cold and snowy for agriculture. E. Agricultural practices that stabilize sediments have reduced erosion and landslides and allowed the growth of lush forests in Japan. F. Climate changes during the last two millennia have caused the Japanese to move their settlements toward the northeast, where the climate is more favorable to agriculture.